U.S. mortgage borrowers were somewhat less eager to tap the equity they have in their homes during the first quarter, but they have plenty of dry powder in a market that’s expected to continue tilting away from refinance lending. Originations of home-equity lines of credit and closed-end second mortgages fell 5.0 percent during the first quarter to an estimated $46.0 billion, according to a new Inside Mortgage Finance analysis. Compared to the sharp 33.6 percent drop in first-lien production, the home-equity sector virtually glowed. The supply of home-equity loans outstanding fell...[Includes three data tables]

Lenders originating nonprime mortgages have a number of different programs for borrowers shut out of the agency market, including an emphasis on reduced documentation requirements. Deephaven Mortgage is among the lenders that have pooled newly originated nonprime home loans into mortgage-backed securities. The company’s recent $250.13 million MBS included a variety of loans, largely focused on non-qualified mortgages. Some 82.6 percent of the loans in the deal were...

Bank of America continued to dominate second lien lending with $4.05 billion of originations during the first quarter of 2017…

Other contributors to the deal include Stearns Lending, American Pacific Mortgage and Cornerstone Home Lending.

Deal agent compensation likely would include additional fees for less common, more intensive work…

Ginnie Mae hit a milestone in the MBS market during the first quarter of 2017, edging past Freddie Mac to become the second-largest supplier of single-family MBS in the world. A new Inside MBS & ABS analysis reveals $1.705 trillion of Ginnie 1-4 family MBS outstanding at the end of March, a 2.2 percent increase in just three months. Meanwhile, outstanding single-family Freddie MBS rose 0.7 percent to $1.703 trillion. Both Ginnie and Freddie accounted...[Includes two data tables]

Treasury said one problem with the current risk-retention rule is that it’s promulgated jointly by six different federal regulators.

The spring and summer home-buying season is in full throttle and with rates falling to yearly lows, mortgage bankers should be hiring in droves. Right? Not necessarily. Top-ranked lenders such as Quicken Loans and Movement Mortgage report they continue to search for new talent, but others are being careful about their hiring plans. Employment in the mortgage brokerage sector has been...

Mortgage lenders that expect to close on a pending home-equity line-of-credit near the end of this year may run afoul of the new Home Mortgage Disclosure Act rule from the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau if the HELOC doesn’t close on time, compliance experts cautioned this week. That’s because the CFPB created a compliance gap by failing to establish a rule to guide industry conduct during the transition from the current reporting regime to the new one. At least that’s the assessment of some top HMDA professionals during a break-out session at the 2017 American Bankers Association regulatory compliance conference in Orlando this week. The crux of the problem is...

The Treasury Department says it’s possible that originations are being stifled by caps on points and fees charged to borrowers.